STICKY BIT PREDICTOR FOR FLOATING-POINT MULTIPLICATION

In a floating-point multiplication of two numbers in which a value of a sticky bit is needed, each of two trailing zero encoders calculates the number of trailing zeroes associated with its mantissa. The sum of the two trailing zero counts determines the number of trailing zeroes in the mantissa product. This sum is compared to a constant to determine the sticky bit. Each encoder is comprised of a plurality of individual encoders arranged in a plurality of rows for providing the trailing zero count.